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editor's note

Tanya Chaitanya (Editor Femina India)

For every doubting Thomas who tells you women can’t scale mountains, wrestle in the ring, endure physical hardship, your comeback should be a simple hashtag:#StandStrong.
There’s no bigger retaliation than success, they say. So show your calibre to these detractors or anybody who believes that we, as women, lack the potential to be physically as fit as men by being just that. Not to say that it will be an easy process.
The conditioning that we are not at par physically starts early. From the time we are offered a hand to bring down the cookie jar to when we are told not to lift too heavy a weight; when the sports selectors in schools bypass promising girl children or when the male friends refuse to count us in in any serious hiking plans—that feeling of being physically less is ingrained right from the beginning.
So how is it that we witness sportswomen like Mary Kom packing a punch in the arena or a badminton champ like PV Sindhu physically pushing herself to the limits? Or the fact that celebs like Jacqueline Fernandez, Taapsee Pannu, Katrina Kaif swear by their fitness routine and are known to train for longer hours than their male counterparts?
Then again look beyond these superwomen. Look around you. There are regular women storming into male bastions, physically-challenging professions and pursuits, and coming out triumphant. This new-found confidence comes with taking care of yourself, being cognizant of the fact that our body needs to be given TLC, from the right diet and nutrition to exercise and care to help us stand strong.
This is when I raise a toast: Here’s to strong women. May we know them, may we be them, may we raise them!

Pernia Qureshi and Radha Reddy on their unique bond

Fashionista, entrepreneur, actor… there are many names that describe Pernia Qureshi. Kuchipudi dancer, however, is the one she’s partial to. Trained in kathak since childhood, Qureshi was introduced to kuchipudi through a dance workshop in her college in the US. “At that time, I had not even heard of kuchipudi, but I really enjoyed the workshop. When I came back to Delhi on a break, I asked mom to find me the best gurus of the form. That’s how I was introduced to the Reddys. When I saw their version of kuchipudi, I forgot all that I had learnt before and started from the basics with a class of five-year-olds!”

It was no surprise that Qureshi was enchanted by Raja Reddy and Radha Reddy, who are joint recipients of the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awards. After all, this was the duo that brought back kuchipudi into modern public consciousness back in the 1960s and had legions of fans both in India and abroad. While Raja Reddy impressed with his masculine vigour, Radha Reddy was the embodiment of lyrical femininity as they depicted Shiva-Parvati, Rama-Sita and Krishna-Radha.

What made Qureshi stand out at Natya Tarangini, the training institute run by the Reddys in Delhi, was her sheer energy and eagerness to learn. “Pernia came into our lives like a whirlwind. She was vibrant and hyper, but also very hardworking. She would not take ‘no’ for an answer and would insist on training even on holidays,” says Radha Reddy. Qureshi picked up the art form in record time and became one of the Reddys’ most cherished students. “Though she was trained in kathak earlier, it was not difficult for her to pick up kuchipudi because she was giving her 100 per cent and had the lasya (feminine softness). In fact, one didn’t have to make much of an effort to teach her abhinaya (expressions),” says Radha Reddy.

An accomplished dancer now, Qureshi has often performed with her gurus and given solo performances as well. “They’ve taught me much more than dance. I’ve learnt discipline, patience and hard work that helped me develop as a dancer and a human being. Radha aunty has put in many hours helping me perfect my practice. And that’s the hardest job... sitting there and making somebody do something again and again till she becomes perfect in it. She has the patience of a god and is a person who I share a mother-daughter bond with,” says Qureshi. “We speak about everything—my problems, my work... I’ve cried in this institute about other things in my life and they’ve been there for me.

I have been lucky to find a second home here.” For Radha Reddy too, Qureshi is more than just another student. “She has a pure heart. A lot of kids have learnt from us, but few have connected like a child and touched our hearts like Pernia.”